Nr. 1 - 1. Quartal 2002

Generation of Tissues and Organs from Cultivated Cells – Vision or Reality?
W. W. Minuth, K. Schumacher, R. Strehl, U. de Vries

Abstract

One of the major goals in biomedicine is the generation of functional tissues and organ parts from cultivated cells to support regeneration, as implants or as extracorporal bed-side modules. Experimental reality shows that there have been accomplishments in producing artificial tissue with methods currently available, but too many tissue specific characteristics are not expressed or lost during culture. Cultured liver parenchyma does not show sufficient detoxification, pancreatic islets lose the ability to produce insulin, renal epithelia do not perform excretion functions and skeletal tissue cells do not deposit mechanically stable extracellular matrix in culture. Therefore future emphasis in tissue engineering must be placed in the generation of functional tissues and the modulation of specific characteristics. Artificial tissues will only be beneficial when they can be used risk-free for tissue regeneration, implantation or in biomodules for regeneration and life-support.

Key words: tissue engineering, artificial organs, differentiation, scaffold, perfusion culture

Prof. Dr. Will W. Minuth
Institut für Anatomie
Universität Regensburg
Universitätstr. 31
D-93053 Regensburg
E-mail: will.minuth@vkl.uni-regensburg.de

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